The Sunday morning news. [volume] (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1886-1891, 1887-05-15
is IT ANOTHER WATER JOB?
THE zzORR.rS AQUEDUCT PROPRIETORS
THE APPARENT SCREMERS.


THE APPARENT SCREAfERS.
DsSerting streams and Waterways 10y
which 1Aey May Eventually Control
the supply of all the Large Ciiies-
The rIsli Owners Making a Desperate
Fight Against Then.
MoRR1sTowN, May IA suit has been
in progress here all day which, while on it's
face is only of local interest, is calculated
sooner or later 10 involve the supply of
wat = for Jersey City, Newark and all the
lar 70 cities of the State. On April 18th
last an application was made to Justice
Magie in Elizabeth by the Proprietors of
tie Morris aqueduct for the appointment
df three commissioners to assess and as
& r ain the amount OF damage to be done
ito certain lands in Morris county by the
perpetual taking and diversion of ''Sand
Spring. ia Passaic township and what is
kr own as Mills B riley brook, also in Pas
sale township, the waters of which streams
at present flow dow to and upon the mill
property of the New Jersey felt mills at
Stanley, comprising about fifteen acres,
owned by Frank j. Mather and occupied
by Paul J. Armour and Charles w. Ar
mour, and upon viii b mortgages are held
by the National Bank of the Republic, the
st. Nicholas Bank and the Third National
Bank of New York; and to assess the COM
pensation to be made to those parties for
the damages oceasioned by said perpetual
taking and diversion of said streams from
said lands and mill property. The COM
missioners appointed are ex-senator Can
field, William BARLEY and Guy Minton.
Last Sunday view of the premises was
taken by the commissioners and an inspec-
ton made of the water works here. The com.
nissioners were accompanied by ex-senator
William Brinkerhoff. Stephen 81. Little
and Frank j. Mallow representing the mill
owners and Riparian owners, and Il. @.
Pitney and 81. =: Pitney, Jr., representing
the Proprietors of the Morris asueduct.
An investigation into this matter by the
SUNDAY MORNING News reporters has de-
yeloped the fact that this suit is the COM
mencement of a scheme to gather all the
waters of the tributaries in that section of
the country for the purpose of securing,
eventually, the entire wafer supply from
the Northern New Jersey water shed and
storing it for the eventual use of Jersey
City, Newark and other cities, with which
the Proprietors of the Morris Aqueduct
may be able to make contracts, as the most
casual reader must be convinced by per-
usal of the following brief history of the
progress of the Morris Aqueduct Co.
The original act of Incorporation of the
Proprietors of the Morris acquedu ct
was passed November 18th, 1893, and
gives the company no power to acquire
land or water rights by condemnation. By
the supplement passed in February, 1862,
authority was granted by the legislature to
add to and enlarge their works and increase
their facilities for furnishing water to the
village of Morristown, to such extent and
in such manner as might be deemed neces-
sary, and for that purpose to take and di-
yer any spring or springs stream or streams
of water having their course running or
being to the westward of the village of
Morristown and between the direct road
leading from Morristown to Baskingridge
and the direct road leading from Morris
town to Mendha n; and to lay down, main
tain and repair water pipes. In 1876
general law was passed providing for the
construction, maintenance and operation
of wat works by which any acqueduct
company then in existence nuder any
special charter of This State should have
the right from time to time to add to and
extend their works to such extenct as
might be necessary to carry out the pur-
poses its corporation and for that pur-
pose to take such lands and divert all such
streams of water as should be necessary to
that end. In 1883 an act was passed max
ing it lawful for any acquedcut or water
company organized under the general law
or special charter for the purpose of sup
ping any city, borough or town with water
to extend its mains outside and beyond the
corporate limits of such city, borough or
town--along any road or street leading
therefrom for the purdose of supplying the
dwellers along such road or street with
water.
It is upon this last clause that the appli-
cation referred to in this article is based,
and there is no doubt that the company
proposes to extend its works and enlarge
its supply as rapidly as possible. Two
new reservoirs are in course of construc-
ton by the company although it is posi-
lively known that the old reservoir, con-
structed for the purpose of supplying
Morristown with water, for which purpose
the company was originally incorporated,
from an inspection made OF it last Satur-
LAY, is not only of sufficient capacity to
supply Morristown with water for many
years to come, but latterly the company
has been supplying Madison with water
from the same reservoir. The Proprietors
of the Morris aqueduet already have two
decisions in their favor At the June
term of the Supreme Court in 1884 mo-
ton was argued on eertiorari proceedings
instituted by Henry NJ Olmsted against
the Proprietors for the purpose of testing
the validity of just such commission AS
has just been appointed upon the appli-
cation above referred to. The decision of
the Court was:
First-That the proprietors have power through
condemnation, to take lands and diver streams to
such an extent % may be necessary to carry out
the purposes of the Incorporation and in so doing
not confined to the territory stated in the act
1862
Second-The said incorporation, under the act
hoa~, k~xa 81.